Have you ever used a slightly pinkish lotion or applied a coral colored powder to a particularly irritating bug bite? If so, chances are, you’ve come in contact with calamine, even if you weren’t aware of it. Calamine is a mineral-based medicine that people all over the world have been using for centuries. At Aspen Kay Naturals, our team of soap specialists is dedicated to using the best, most effective natural ingredients to help purify and beautify your skin. As such, we make good use of calamine in our products. If you don’t know about or aren’t sure what calamine is, it’s time to acquaint yourself with this useful substance. In the following blog, we describe calamine and its many merits, plus we explain how we can help you take advantage of its positive effects.

First of all, what exactly is calamine? The New Oxford American dictionary defines it as “a pink powder consisting of zinc carbonate and ferric oxide, used to make a soothing lotion or ointment.” Basically, these two parts come together to form calamine.

Now, supposing that you’re not intimately familiar with zinc carbonate and ferric oxide, let’s break these elements down. Sciencing explains: “zinc carbonate (ZnCO3), normally referred to as smithsonite, is an ore (an organic solid material that you can pull metals or minerals from) that contains the metal zinc...The mineral has a number of uses in health care.” So, smithsonite, or zinc carbonate, is often used in medicinal contexts. Sciencing describes why this is the case: “zinc itself is an essential mineral for all human and animal life. It allows the body to process food and nutrients as well as supports the functioning of key enzymes” and “is necessary” for “skin...growth.” Zinc is a fundamental material in life, so it follows that it could help your skin.

In comparison to zinc carbonate’s important properties, ferric oxide is rather insignificant.Drugs.com, a medicinal information resource, notes: “ferric oxide red occurs naturally as hematite (a dark red mineral that can contain iron) ore and rust.” Ferric oxide is used as a “coloring agent” in some medicines, giving calamine is classic pink color.

Basically, calamine is a combination of minerals that gives your skin what it needs to thrive and comes in a rosy hue.

How long have people used zinc carbonate and similar substances on their skin? According to Preventive Nutrition: The Comprehensive Guide for Health Professionals, “zinc was used topically as calamine lotion as far back as 1500 BC by the Egyptians.” For the past 3,500 years, people have been using calamine to treat their skin. This practice continues today: the FDA (United States Food Drug Administration) recommends it for “outsmarting poison ivy and other poisonous plants,” while the WHO (World Health Organization) includes it on its Model List of Essential Medicines, under “anti-inflammatory and antipruritic [relieving itchiness] medicines.” In short, calamine was, is, and will continue to be a crucial constituent in your skin-care toolkit.

Now that you understand what calamine is, what benefits does this mineral-based substance provide? Calamine can:

• Alleviate itching. This is one of calamine lotion’s primary purposes. Everyday Health explains: “calamine is an anti-itch medicine that works by causing a cooling sensation as it evaporates on your skin. Calamine also dries oozing or weeping from minor skin irritation.”Everyday Health comments that calamine can be useful in this capacity for a wide variety of conditions, including “chickenpox, insect bites or stings, measles, eczema, sunburn, poison ivy” and many others.
• Clear up acne. According to Style Craze, “the zinc oxide in calamine lotion...has anti-inflammatory properties. Studies have shown that this can help aid acne treatment,” so you can bid adieu to your blemishes.
• Help wounds heal faster. Style Craze also points out that calamine “accelerates wound healing. This property of calamine lotion is attributed to the zinc it contains. The mineral is important for treating wounds and skin regeneration. The lotion also inhibits the growth of microbes - preventing any further infection.” This further demonstrates zinc’s power as an essential element of biological life.
• Protect the skin from sunburns. In addition to treating the itchy after-effects of sunburns, the popular blog Fashion Lady explains that calamine can also protect your skin from being burned in the first place.
• Moisturize your skin. Calamine’s hydrating properties make it a good moisturizer.
• Reduce oiliness. In addition to keeping your skin hydrated, Style Craze notes: “some reports say that calamine lotion can keep your T-zone in check for at least 9 hours a day.”
• Clean the skin. For all of the above reasons and more, calamine works well as a skin cleanser.

These are just a few of calamine’s many advantages. Since it can soothe, hydrate, and heal your skin, it makes for an excellent ingredient in soap.

Would you like to experience the calming benefits of calamine while cleansing your skin? Aspen Kay Naturals hand makes our Oatmeal and Aloe soap with a healthy helping of calamine.

Order yours today!